Oak Tree Junior Classic to mark return to competition for state juniors

By Ken MacLeod

They lost their high school seasons and state championships, but top junior golfers from across Oklahoma will clash in two significant events in the coming weeks as competitive golf resumes.

The Oak Tree Junior Classic is a 36-hole, one-day event with a 120-player field on May 26 at Oak Tree Country Club in Edmond. Contestants will play 18 holes at Oak Tree East and 18 holes at Oak Tree West.

That event will serve as a great tuneup for the Oklahoma Golf Association Junior Boys and Girls Championship Presented by Taylor Moore June 1-4 at Kickingbird Golf Course also in Edmond.

Tosh Hays, head coach at Oklahoma Christian School and director of junior golf at Oak Tree CC, has led the creation of the Oak Tree event along with Kevin Wagner of the Oak Tree staff. They opened the website for entries on May 7 and almost immediately had more than 100 entries in the 120-person field.

“It’s been awesome,” Hayes said. “The OGA has given a spot in the Oklahoma Open to the winner and that’s a big incentive. Oak Tree has been great stepping up to do this for the kids. I made a promise to my kids at OCS when they lost their seasons that we would do something for them. This will be like a de-facto state championship without classes.”

The event does happen during a dead period for college recruiting so college coaches will not be able to attend. It also comes without national ranking points due to the timing.

But the field is impressive. Seven of Golf Oklahoma’s top-10 players from its high school preview are currently in the field, including Jaxon Dowell of Edmond (2), Jordan Wilson of Edmond (3), James Roller of Tulsa (4), Luke Morgan of Guthrie (5), Bo Robbins of Guthrie (9) and Tres Hill of Elk City (10). From the Others To Watch category are Ryder Cowan of Edmond, Hayden Hall of Owasson, Drew Mabrey of Tulsa, Eric Schuessler of Stillwater, Ben Stoller of Owasson, Brayden Strickland of Oklahoma City and Brett Wilcoxen of Owasso.

Players will follow precautions standard at courses during the pandemic and no large gatherings will be held before or after the event. For more information or to see the full field, go to the tournament website here.